22 October 2015

My Second Favorite Time of Day to Ride

Thursday, Oct 22nd
#387 / #181

This post is for Fran. Not that it makes up or anything, but ...

Evening rides are underratted. Sometimes you get to see wildlife, but not this ride. We did see a lighted up caterpiller of mountain bikers, head lights, tail lights, head lamps. One fellow had no lights at all. A dark 'piller segment.

A group of runners, very good about announcing "bike up". Various other bicyclists of differing levels of intensity.

I did want to yell once, "Think twice before assuming you'll stay ahead of the fat guy on the trike on the down hill. We may be old, but we are more aero than thou!"

My trike continues to behave nicely after last weeks thorough cleaning, but Red Leader's ride is going into the shop again.

His rear derailler got very cozy with the wheel.
Again.
I think one of the chain guides caught on a spoke for an instant, bending the derailluer mount.

He was in the small ring in front, heading up a hill, in a middlish ring in back, shifting to an even larger ring. It jammed right up.

I parked my ride and went to help (I wasn't much help because twist shifters baffle me). For those of you not used to the requirements of a 12 foot chain, the person in front turns the cranks and works the shifters, the person in back holds the rear off the ground and fools with the derailluer. Unless you are Mr. Fantastic, it really takes two people.

We got him in a gear that would work, I shoved from behind to get him going, then gave a rolling assist on the next steep section. We were only a few blocks from the car when this whole thing happened.